Chapter 722: Countdown to the Last War

Ore Star Continent, Northern Exchange Point.

Beep beep beep!

Song Shiyuan, who was in charge of overseeing various resource trades, suddenly heard a communication alert in his ear. As soon as he entered the Torch Network and received the message, his expression darkened.

The message came from the family’s Shadow Division, and it wasn’t good news.

Despite the Song Family’s best efforts to cover it up, the Starsea Giant Ape Civilization’s side—after years of careful delay—finally realized something was wrong. They’ve now launched a full-scale advance, and the two uncontrolled ninth-tier Machina Overlords left behind can’t do anything to stop them.

“We’re running out of time. Pass down my orders: from now on, ramp up mining and resource collection at all costs. One year from now, we make a formal retreat!”

The moment this order went out, the Song clansmen in the Truth Mechanicus Civilization’s territory grew even busier. They still had a good stash of smart chips, tiered AIs, dark energy power sources, and Truth Alloy parts left, so the Song Family sweetened their offers to boost acquisitions even further.

The hike in purchase prices fired up the lower-ranked Machina in the Truth Mechanicus domain, too. Crowds swelled at every Song Family exchange point, the lines stretching as far as the eye could see.

But whether they were Song Family foot soldiers or Machina laborers, none of them realized that Song Shiyuan had already slipped away from Ore Star Continent and left the Truth Mechanicus territory entirely after issuing his order.

Eight-Armed Serpent Demon galaxy cluster, Central Star Domain.

By now, almost two hundred years had passed, but even at a normal pace, none of the three advance fleet clusters should have made much progress in such a short time—no matter who you asked.

And yet, the impossible had happened, plain as day.

Divine Dynasty’s Eleventh Advance Fleet—the Song Family Fleet.

Song Chi had just come out of closed-door training, still a bit puzzled, not really up to speed.

He finally understood after a few Clan Elders in the group chat explained everything in detail.

“So what you’re saying is: the main forces of the three advance fleets used some special means to converge, then blitzed through a weak point in the Serpent Demons’ defensive line and pushed straight through, all the way to the edge of this Demon God Continent?”

After hearing the explanation, Song Chi only felt more confused.

It all sounded a little too far-fetched.

Since the war started, the Torch Human Civilization had definitely been pushing the advantage, but what was supposed to be a thousand-year struggle got compressed into just a few centuries—that was something he literally couldn’t wrap his head around.

Generally, a one-sided clean sweep like this only happens between civilizations with an overwhelming power gap. If the Torch Civilization really had this much muscle, how could they have stalemated with the Eight-Armed Serpent Demons for over a hundred thousand years?

While everyone mulled it over, the group fell silent for a beat. There was only one explanation.

The pressure on the other Torch Civilization fronts must’ve gotten worse, and so ending this war fast was the only way the Four Empires could free up their hands.

That meant the Divine Xia, Xian Qin, Chiyu, and Sankt Empires had all been forced to use their deepest reserves, which was the only way they could bulldoze the main fleet over a hundred million light-years in less than two hundred years.

“But so what if we made it this far? The other side has a level-nine floating-land that’s half a step into the Star Continent. Its outer Floating-Land Shield alone is enough to block even mythic beings!”

After Song Shixing finished, Song Wujian—silent up until now—finally spoke:

“Our Song Family’s history is barely five thousand years, and we’ve already got multiple legendary trump cards. The shortest-lived of the Four Heavenly Pillar Royal Families has more than two hundred thousand years. Every single one is top of the line under the mythic path—do you really think they wouldn’t have mythic-level tricks up their sleeves?”

Hearing this, Song Chi and the others tightened their brows in thought.

The chat went dead silent.

Everyone there knew: when Song Wujian said “mythic-level tricks,” he didn’t mean relics or artifacts—he meant the kind of secret techniques capable of unleashing full-blown mythic-level force.

Every one of the Four Heavenly Pillar Families had these in their arsenal. They’ve spent hundreds of thousands of years exploring the endless Sea of Stars, collecting trump cards the rest of the world couldn’t even imagine.

Before the silence broke, a new request to join the group popped up.

“Xuancang, what is it?”

As soon as he entered, Song Xuancang said urgently:

“Reporting, Clan Elder! The Divine Dynasty headquarters has issued an emergency order—all Star-Annihilator-class Captains are to assemble at the Operations Center for a pre-battle meeting…”

Hearing this, the Song Family’s four Star-Annihilator Captains exchanged looks, feeling something shift.

Song Wujian spoke softly, almost to himself:

“This emergency meeting can’t just mean that other fronts are in trouble. Chances are, the war’s about to pivot exactly the way we guessed—and it won’t be long before those bigwigs up top summon us. But will it actually work out? That’s still up in the air!”

“With the Serpent Demons still fielding undamaged ninth-tier power, our side and theirs are about to throw everything into one last no-holds-barred battle. Only by hurting them for real can we push things any further!”

…

Song Chi and the others didn’t waste time. When a call comes directly from the Command Center of the Four Empires, there’s no point dragging your feet.

Countless light-years from the Demon God Floating-Land lay the Torch Grand Fleet’s Operations Center.

On a level-four floating-land nearly a light-year wide, super battleships—each over ten thousand kilometers long—descended one after another. Once grounded, commanders sorted themselves by status and ship power, hovering their vessels in strict formation. Not a single clash broke out, from start to finish.

And let’s be real—there were definitely tensions simmering. But with three Superdimensional Motherships sitting below, each the size of a billion-kilometer flagship, any discontent was forced down no matter how deep it ran.

When Song Chi and his three companions arrived, they saw an unbelievable number of Star-Annihilator-class ships. A quick headcount was enough to leave Song Chi’s heart racing.

There were over ten thousand Star-Annihilator-class ships present—more than five figures.

To put that in perspective, any single Star-Annihilator from Torch Civilization could establish a high-order civilization on its own. Even the weakest one would be enough for that, right?

This was the depth the Torch Civilization had built over 300,000 years. No wonder they were considered top contenders for Overlord Civilization.

And don’t forget—these weren’t even all their strongest. Elite forces were still garrisoned at the Bottomless Abyss front, the Starsea Insect Front, Emperor City, and other key strongholds.

After arriving, Song Chi’s group parked their ships near those from what used to be Five-Plate—now Six-Plate—Galaxy’s other kingdoms.

A few dozen minutes passed. Once every summoned Star-Annihilator had arrived, the three Superdimensional Motherships below stirred for the first time, gleaming with waves of prismatic light. Next thing, Song Chi saw twelve colossal golden light giants condense into form above the floating-land.

Each of the twelve giants took their place, circling the more than ten thousand gathered Star-Annihilators in a massive ring.

Aboard the Heavenly Ruin’s main control room, the shadow of Song Chi’s Dual Pupils appeared. Instead of gazing at the giant golden figures above, his eyes stayed locked on the Superdimensional Mothership anchored farthest right.

The twelve golden giants were obviously linked to the “Immortal Qin Twelve Golden Men Incarnation”. And that mothership below on the right? That was the flagship of Ying Huang from the Xian Qin Divine Dynasty.

While Song Chi watched, another surge of prismatic radiance flashed across Ying Huang’s flagship. At the same time, the twelve golden giants above blazed with overwhelming light.

Golden light swept across the sky, enveloping every one of the five-figure Torch warships beneath.

From that moment on, there wasn’t a trace of the Torch fleet left to see—no matter where you looked.

It wasn’t just visual. Even the patrol radars of lower-tier warships outside the floating-land failed to pick up a single signal. To the world, only the twelve golden giants remained, standing sentinel in the sky.

…

“What the…”

Song Chi wasn’t the only one. At that instant, Captain after Captain glanced around, trying to figure out what just happened.

One moment, they’d been standing on a vast floating-land. The next, they were in this pitch-black void. Even for the people involved, it was baffling.

But calm returned quickly. After a little observation, everyone realized they’d landed in a special sealed space.

With the upcoming meeting tied to the most crucial battle in this entire civilization war, and with only a hair’s breadth separating them from the Eight-Armed Serpent Demon homeworld, such secrecy was clearly vital.

In reality, the Four Empires were even more paranoid than expected. Next, the three Superdimensional Motherships activated a second multicolored extremity component.

This was an extremity-grade security protocol module.

Only after every Captain here signed the security agreement did the meeting officially begin.

“Everyone—the time for the final battle is set. Ten years from today, we start. This fight decides the Torch Human Civilization’s fate. If we win, we’ll make the leap toward Overlord Civilization. If we lose, we’ll be licking our wounds in the Torch Galaxy Cluster for the next hundred thousand years. So give it everything you’ve got!”

This was the Supreme Leader of the Divine Xia Empire, firing everyone up and reigniting the blood that had long gone cold in every Captain’s chest.

Most of these people had lived for thousands or tens of thousands of years. When you first become a Torch Captain, you’re full of fire. But after a millennium—or ten—the fire fades, and your edges get worn down.

But now, with so many gathered here, that old fire started to burn again. At the mention of “Overlord Civilization,” every Captain felt a surge of energy.

Ruler of the Starsea—Overlord Civilization. That was the ultimate goal of all civilizations, and the obsession of the Torch Human Civilization for ages.

Sure, their powerful warship fleets made them famous across the Shattered Sea of Stars, but among true Overlord-level civilizations, lacking mythic firepower meant being looked down on, slandered, and squeezed from every direction.

Song Chi and the others might not have felt it personally—they’d only just made Star-Annihilator class and been busy with the war, never visiting the Primal Godland, Outer Domain, or Bottomless Abyss. Only on those great stages did you feel the real gap.

After that, Pei Dinan, the King of the Sankt Federation, stepped forth.

As founder of the Sankt Federation’s pillar royal family, Akleimon, he was also recognized as one of the Four Human Sovereigns of Torch Civilization.

His message was just as clear—no holding back, from anyone.

Lastly came Ying Huang of the Xian Qin Divine Dynasty.

Despite being the most junior of the Four Empires, Ying Huang didn’t say much. Instead, he produced a prismatic extremity component.

Light of Order lv110

Rarity: Prismatic/Extremity

Unique Trait: Light of Order

Effect: For every 5,000,000 Eon Energy Points consumed, you can invite a Star-Annihilator-class or higher Torch warship to help construct the Hall of Order. Each invited Star-Annihilator increases the Light of Order’s power by 1%. Each Star River-class ship adds 3%. Each Superdimensional Mothership adds 5%. You can invite up to 10,000 Torch warships. Current tally: (735/10,000). Order Power Bonus: 925%.

…

{Light of Order: Consume 50,000,000 Eon Energy Points to focus the collective power of order within the Hall of Order, firing a devastating blast capable of annihilating everything in its path. Cooldown: (5 × number of invited warships) years.}

When the component’s effects finished scrolling by, a deep hush fell over the dark space.

A prismatic extremity-grade module, and not just any module, but one with a unique trait—uncommon at any tier. Its effect was already leagues above other components.

The kicker: its power scaled up with more participants. Even if only 10,000 Star-Annihilators were bound, its strength would shoot up to a terrifying 10,000%.

And that’s not just some random boost. That 10,000% multiplier started from the component’s own level 110 baseline—a hundredfold mythic force. Imagine how terrifying that is.

Of course, since it all channeled through a Superdimensional Mothership at tier nine, the final figure would be discounted. But even a hundredfold boost was hard to fathom.

As soon as the module’s details went public, everyone instantly understood Ying Huang’s play.

After that, the invitation process ran nonstop.

As time dragged on, the invite tally ticked higher and higher.

With the Four Empires’ top Star-Annihilators gathered in one place, it was the perfect chance to link up with the module.

By the end, the Order Power bonus on the component was over 10,300%. Once war broke out, the “Light of Order” module would be the perfect trump card.

Now they all understood why the security agreement was non-negotiable. This kind of trump card wasn’t something you let leak.